I can kind of understand where Never Trump conservatives (what's left of them, anyway) are coming from. Because respectability or something, idk.
But I don't think non-conservatives have any right to be surprised by President Trump's support, particularly from Christians. These people were told for at least twenty years that they should check their faith at the door, that we elect Presidents rather than pastors or priests. These types of Christians apparently came around to the opposition's way of thinking. So they did not vote for one any of the outspoken Christians in the 2016 primaries. Rather, they voted for the candidate who promised to have their collective back.
Speaking of which, I think it's obvious that these types of Christians are seeking a political bodyguard. These voters have had quite a lot of social change rammed down their throats in the past several years (or decades). They've made no secret of their concerns over "same-sex marriage", unchecked illegal immigration, drug epidemics and so forth. At each step of the way, they were told "you lost, deal with it", "nobody cares about you or your precious little religious freedom", "get over it", etc.
My question for the left is: What did you think would happen? Did you believe that there wouldn't be consequences for any of that? Were you expecting to never pay a price for that type of discourse?
A lot of Christians fear persecution in the future. You can dismiss that as unlikely as much as you want. But that's how a lot of them see it. They're expecting great difficulties in the years to come. Whether or not they're right about that was never the point. In good faith, that's how they see it. And just about the time their concerns were reaching a fever pitch, President Trump presented himself as someone who can move the needle on the issues they care about.
Worse (for the left), they've seen President Trump make genuine advancements on the pro-life cause, immigration and other issues. President Trump has largely validated their decision to vote for him. Do you honestly believe they're less likely to vote for him now than they were back in 2016? Ha!
Worst of all (maybe for all of us), these types of Christians believe that President Trump is shining a light on "the DC establishment", "the elite", "the deep state" or whatever you want to call it. They now see (or think they see) very little relevant difference between Democrats and Republicans. They think politics at this level is a game of touch football, where the two sides pretend to disagree in public but, behind closed doors, pat each other on the back for a job well done in ripping off the American people. Goings on since January 20, 2017 have done NOTHING to change their opinions. On the contrary, they've been reinforced.
Again, it doesn't matter if these Christians are factually right or factually wrong. This is what they believe. And now they see President Trump as a champion for their causes. It's hard to argue that he hasn't advanced their agenda in ways no previous Republican President has even attempted.
No less than the New York Times is admitting that President Trump's base is bigger now than it was even in 2016. If 2020 is a referendum on President Trump's first term, say hello to his second term.
